Yoshimori Sumimura
Yoshimori Sumimura (墨村良守'', Sumimura Yoshimori'') is the protagonist of the Kekkaishi series. He attends the Karasumori Middle School by day, and carries out his duties as a demon exterminator (also known as kekkaishi) by night. He is the 22nd Kekkaishi of the Sumimura clan, and a protector of the sacred land of Karasumori, along with fellow Kekkaishi and childhood friend, Tokine Yukimura. Appearance Apart from the typical features of a young teenager, Yoshimori also has a number of distinctive traits. Among these, one of the most significant is the Houin on his right palm; a black square which indicates his status as the 22nd head of the Sumimura clan, and the Legitimate Successor. He is also known for his diminutive stature, although this is mostly seen when compared with Tokine, who, it must be noted, is two years his senior. Furthermore, since Tokine was severely injured in protecting him as a nine-year-oldKekkaishi anime, Episode 1, he has since gained a number of scars in his attempts to protect her from further harm. He is short, has black spikey hair and brown eyes. Personality As a child, Yoshimori was distinguished for his weakness of spirit. Numerous flashbacks portray him as a boy who cried a lot. However, it can be noted that he would often enjoy himself when spending time with Tokine. It could be seen early on that he regarded his duties as a Kekkaishi with disdain. Constantly throughout the series, Yoshimori clashes with his grandfather, whose criticisms of the Yukimura clan lead to conflicts between the two. After Tokine saved Yoshimori from an ayakashi when he was nine, Yoshimori adopted a firmer attitude in regard to his responsibilities as a Kekkashi, and in protecting those around him. This is most evident in the extreme lengths he goes to in order to prevent Tokine from coming to any harm. Yoshimori, in example, stood by her as an ice ayakashi prepared to kill her. In spite of his general resentment of his older brother, Masamori, and for his grandfather, he is also shown to care for his family, as seen in his constant urges to assist the former in his various endeavors, and his defense of his ever-missing mother. Yoshimori is also irritable following nights on which he works as a Kekkaishi, which is juxtaposed with his pleasure in making others happy, as seen with his creation of a number of sweets, and, most notably, candy castles. His favorite drink is coffee milk. He is often considered too considerate or "soft" (by Gen Shishio), especially when contrasted with Tokine's own often ruthless nature. On several occasions when others told him to let matters lie, such as with the ghost of the confectioner from early in the series, Yoshimori went to great lengths to aid others when there was no great benefit for himself, indicating a charitable spirit. Because of his long nights, Yoshimori constantly falls asleep during class (though Tokine doesn't have this problem). He always brings a pillow to school and often takes long naps on the rooftop. History Yoshimori was born the second son of Shuji and Sumiko Sumimura. Born with the Houin, the mark of the Legitimate Successor, he was predestined to lead the Sumimura clan as the 22nd Clan Head; the traditional protector of the sacred land of Karasumori. Although he was treated with some jealousy by his older brother Masamori due to being the Legitimate Successor, he grew up in the care of his father while his mother journeyed the world. As a member of the Sumimura clan, Yoshimori was always encouraged by his grandfather to avoid contact with the members of the Yukimura clan. In spite of this, he built and maintained a strong relationship with the Yukimura clan's own heir, Tokine. While Yoshimori was something of a crybaby as a child, Tokine was his closest friend, often protecting him from the things that scared him, such as vicious neighborhood dogs. She would also play games with him, once bringing fireworks to Karasumori for them to play with. This protective trait led to tragedy when he was nine years old. While on patrol, Tokine was severely wounded by an ayakashi, partially due to Yoshimori's inaction. Following this, Yoshimori began training rigorously to ensure that Tokine would never again come to harm. Plot Kokuboro As Kokuboro launched its grand attack on Karasumori, Yoshimori was looking for revenge on Kaguro (a member of Kokuboro), who had killed Gen. During the fight, Yoshimori left Karasumori upon seeing Kaguro. Tokine follows him, but keeps a distance away from him. After chasing Kaguro's skin disguise, Yoshimori finds Shion, who is supposed to return to Kokuboro with 2 Kekkaishi and was using the disguise Kaguro used before. Yoshimori purposely gets captured by her to get to Kokuboro (and Kaguro, ultimately). Sen Kagemiya, who had followed Yoshimori, is captured by accident. Shion decides to tell Byaku that Kagemiya is also a kekkaishi, in order to get her job done quickly. Tokine, who sees Yoshimori fly away with Shion, separately follows by grabbing onto a fleeing ayakashi. However, Tokine ends up at the outskirts of Kokubourou, rather than at the main gates where Yoshimori is taken to. Hakubi returns with Madaro to tell Shigemori the news, as both cannot move beyond Karasumori's grounds. When Shigemori gets back from defending Karasumori, Madarao and Hakubi tells him the news about Yoshimori and Tokine. So Shigemori, along with the Yagyou, move to go after them by using Shizue Yukimura's skills at opening a portal to Kokubourou. At Kokuboro, Shion attempts to control Yoshimori by using her spider puppet skills. Yoshimori unknowingly creates a small zekkai around him, which repels Shion's forces. So she attempts to drop a boulder on him, which forces him to direct zekkai energy on it, draining him of power. Before the process is complete, Heisuke Matsudo comes in and rescues Yoshimori with Kagami, but forces Yoshimori not to go after Byaku. Yoshimori proceeds to finding Kagemiya, but his efforts are useless so far. Soon Yoshimori finds Princess, but thinks she is a prisoner like him and Kagemiya. He frees her, and in return she grants Yoshimori a power, including how to navigate around the castle and find Kagemiya. When he does, Kagemiya feels he is being saved like how Shishio used to do to him, so he offers to help find Kaguro for Yoshimori. By using his powers, by the time Tokine finds Yoshimori, he sets off to kill Kaguro. Kaguro and Yoshimori engage in the fight - Yoshimori with his incomplete zekkai and Kaguro with his sword powers. Yoshimori loses his advantage of the new zekkai because Kaguro simply increases his sword’s powers, as the previous ones break apart. At this point, Tokine and Kagemiya inform Yoshimori of this. As Yoshimori prepares to sacrifice himself to protect others, Kagemiya shields Yoshimori with a broken shard of Kaguro's sword. At this point, Yoshimori unleashes a brand new type of zekkai. This zekkai instantly destroyed Kaguro, giving Kaguro a warm feeling of life as he dies, but puts Yoshimori in a coma like state with Kagemiya awake inside. Right as this happens, Shigemori and the Yagyou arrive. Tokine, who gets rescued by the Yagyou by one of their member's creatures, uses her skill at reading wavelengths of kekkai to jump into the new zekkai and wake Yoshimori up. Masamori, who tried to break open Yoshimori's zekkai with his own, immediately gathers Kagemiya, Yoshimori, and Tokine, and narrowly escapes from Kokuboro as its dimension crumbles. When Yoshimori awakes, Tokine slaps him for not caring enough for himself. Power and Abilities Hazama-Ryu Kekkai technique: Yoshimori's primary ability. His abnormally high power levels, coupled with his penchant for blunt, borderline haphazard attacks, means that his use of the Hazama style is marked by larger, more impressive kekkais than his colleague Tokine is generally able to produce. Through training, he has managed to dramatically improve his precision, though his style still tends to favor brute force over finesse. In addition to the classic Hazama-style "ketsu" barrier technique, Yoshimori has become adept with a potent, albeit imperfect, "zekkai" barrier that manifests as a black-colored flaming aura that surrounds Yoshimori and eliminates all other presences within it.Kekkaishi anime, Episode 50 In times of great stress, Yoshimori has also proven capable of summoning a rare and potent "shinkai" barrier that manifests itself as a bright white spherical aura extending around Yoshimori at the center.Kekkaishi anime, Episode 51 "Shinkai" is distinct in that, unlike "ketsu", which merely separates the inside from the outside, and "zekkai", which rejects foreign entities, "shinkai" creates a sphere inside of which Yoshimori is able to control reality, rejecting that which he wants removed and maintaining (perhaps even restoring, in Hiura Souji's case) that which he wants preserved. Tokimori Hazama has explained that "shinkai" is "the first step of the first step" in creating a new world.Kekkaishi manga, Chapter 300 Since completing his training in the Sumimura family well, Yoshimori has mastered a perfect "musou" (blank) state, which completely shuts down his conscious mind and separates his powers from his emotions, using the resulting focus to dramatically increase his speed, precision, reflexes and power. This allows him to produce seemingly indestructible kekkai in large numbers without any signs of fatigue or strain. While in this state, Yoshimori summons a familiar, or "landlord", to maintain his connection to his heart. His landlord, Shiguma, takes the form of a striped cube that morphs into various animal and humanoid shapes.Kekkaishi manga, Chapter 266 Shiguma can also relay Yoshimori's subconscious thoughts to his conscious mind, thus allowing the conscious Yoshimori to understand and analyze the world around him in ways he never could otherwise. As part of Yoshimori, though, Shiguma shares his taste for brute force at the expense of subtlety. Okuni reveals to Masamori that Yoshimori is an extremely rare human being that is compatible with Chushinmaru Karasumori, who can share his massive spirit reservoir that has the potential power to destroy the world, with Yoshimori.Kekkaishi manga, Chapter 273 It has become clear that Yoshimori shares an uncommon affinity with Chushinmaru. The child-like Karasumori is drawn to Yoshimori's brashness and brute power, presumably finding it entertaining. Because of this relationship, and when it suits him, Chushinmaru is capable of funneling his own power into Yoshimori, significantly augmenting his already considerable strength. Since their departure from Karasumori Academy, Yoshimori has begun carrying Chushinmaru, contained within a round jewelKekkaishi manga, Chapter 290, in a pouch around his neck.Kekkaishi manga, Chapter 298 Yoshimori is currently training under Tokimori Hazama, so that he can eventually seal the young lord's enormous power for good. Hazama himself has commented that, when he is Karasumori's presence, Yoshimori is nigh unbeatable.Kekkaishi manga, Chapter 297 Trivia *Though it is unknown how much energy Yoshimori has, he was once able to cover the entire courtyard of Karasumori Academy (which had been overgrown by a forest) in a giant kekkai, and wasn't tired afterward.Kekkaishi anime, Episode 14 *On the night that Tokine was injured by Yumigane, Yoshimori was wearing a white version of kunai holsters that Tokine does, but that is the only time he's ever seen with them. *Yoshimori was fighting ayakashi even before he began elementary school.Kekkaishi manga, Chapter 126 Oddly enough, if Tokio Yukimura had survived, he wouldn't have allowed Tokine to begin until she was in junior high.Kekkaishi manga, Chapter 8 References Category:Characters Category:Sumimura Family